DA 2010 Episode 2: Changes
by AngelExposed
Summary: Kitty tries to befriend a slightly aloof and frustrated Remy while Rogue finds herself at heads with him again whilst trying to deal with her own frustration. (FINISHED r&r )
1. Chapter 1: Cold Shoulder

Dismal Angel 2010 - Episode 2

Chapter 1: Cold Shoulder

             Kitty Pryde started down the steep hill towards the lake on the Xavier estate, her short hair windswept, her eyes slightly watering from a cold December chill that pushed against her.  She tugged the collar of her aviator jacket up a little so that the sheepskin lining brushed her cheeks, and she continued her brisk walk.  The wind whistled madly around her, and as she approached the small pier, she could hear the water violently lapping at the support pillars, some of the water even sprayed upon the old badly splintered wood.  

             Remy LeBeau stood at the very edge of the pier looking down into the water, a cigarette in one hand, a can of Budweiser in the other, his long hair brown hair - which was almost long enough to touch the top of his belt – whipping around his back in a furious pulses.

             "Hi," Kitty said, her voice revealing how cold she felt just by its quiver, "cold out, huh?"

             Remy didn't answer, nor did he turn to look at her, his back remained facing her, the can still dangling from his slender tan fingers.

             "Logan said he saw you down here," Kitty admitted, "Just thought I'd check up on you…" she said, she thrust her hands deep into her pockets, fingers almost numb, her teeth gave an audible chitter.

             Remy glanced slightly over his shoulder, only for a split second, he put his cigarette to his mouth, withdrew it, and Kitty watched as smoke rose into the air and dispersed as quickly as it had appeared.

             "You just gonna stand there all broody and silent?" Kitty asked, she looked down to her feet, studying her scuffed leather boots with mild interest.  She hated one way conversations, and this was about as awkward as one could be.   It had been three days since Remy LeBeau had been confirmed innocent – for there had been much suspicion surrounding Jared Rickman's death and it had all involved him.  

             "What'd y' expect me to say, petit?" Remy finally turned towards her, flicking the stub of his cigarette away carelessly to the left into the lake water.

             Kitty gave an expression of disgust, she wasn't appreciative of his polluting the lake on the estate, she wasn't appreciative of his calling her 'petit' at every opportunity reminding her of just how little she'd grown in seven years, and she definitely didn't appreciate his attitude towards her anymore.  

"I don't know what I expect you to say," Kitty admitted honestly, "but I'd just expect more from you than the cold shoulder and a rubber ear," she shivered against the cold, the temperature seemed to be decreasing rapidly.

Remy smirked a little, "you think I should just be all happy-go-lightly just because I'm off the hook?" he asked, the smirk faded, and his eyes became rather cold.

Kitty looked to the floor guiltily, "Not really," she confessed, hands deep in her pockets still, she raised her shoulders up against the cold, and she glanced to Remy wondering how he could stand out here in such temperatures without even wearing a jacket, without being as affected by the cold as she was.  "Aren't you cold?"

Remy gave a shrug, "don't exactly own a jacket here in Bayville, y'know.  All my stuff is back in Illinois," his voice slightly slurred.

Kitty looked up at him, "we are sorry you know…" she trailed off, she tried to read the emotion in his face, but he wasn't letting any show, he'd become very flippant and even more presumptuous than she'd remembered him being, she supposed a lot might have happened in the last seven years that had caused him to change – and not for the better.

"You're the only one who seems to be admittin' it," Remy remarked bitterly, "save your apologies for someone who gives a shit though.  I couldn't care less if any of you think I'm a murderer, or a thief, or just a prick who plays wit' peoples emotions," he took a swig from the can, it was only then that Kitty realised how drunk he was, she took note of a few empty Budweiser cans bobbing up and down in the water, she hadn't noticed before.

"Remy…even when we first brought you in I still felt like I was almost obligated to believe you…I still felt you were my friend."

"Obligated," Remy repeated the word dully, "what's that word mean?"

Kitty opened her mouth to answer, but Remy spoke again before she could.

"I'll tell you what it means…it means forced.  You felt like you were almost forced to believe me, that's what you're saying.  Not because you wanted to but because you felt forced," he looked at her, "you didn't though, did you?"

Kitty swallowed, "Remy…I did have doubts…really…I mean how could anyone really suspect you of killing someone in cold blood?"

"Save it," Remy turned away from her again, he swilled the rest of his Budweiser, and tossed the empty can into the lake to join the others, he then spun back around and passed by her, the boards of the small narrow pier creaking under his feet as he wandered off.

Kitty sighed, feeling the guilt overwhelm her, she hadn't been a very good friend, and she'd only just come to realise it.

             Rogue thrust her fist against the punchbag furiously, she let out a huff in effort, she spun around and swung her leg and kicked at it, her hair clung to her head with sweat, her tanktop was clinging to her back, and her face was soaked. 

             "Really, Rogue…" Bobby Drake was sitting upon a pile of exercise mats, the two of them were in the gymnasium in the basement of the mansion, Bobby was sitting in black shorts and a white tanktop, a fluffy white towel hanging around his neck, his dark blonde hair slightly tinged with perspiration, "don't you think you've hit that punchbag enough?" he'd been watching her for the last hour swinging and kicking at the punchbag as if it were her worst enemy. 

             Normally for Bobby, watching Rogue work out could be one of the most fascinating experiences of a man's day.   The heave of her ample bosom, the swing of her shapely hips and the flex of her powerful thighs was enough to set the hearts of most men racing to a lustful fervour, and Rogue always seemed to be completely unaware of the attention she could draw.

             Today however, Rogue looked less than attractive as her ponytail had become loose, her hair stuck out at weird angles, stray wisps stuck to her sweaty forehead and cheeks, her face was red and her expression extremely frustrated.  And it was less than appealing today that she was beating the pulp out of punchbag that was hanging haphazardly from a chain fixed to the ceiling.

             "Would you rather I hit you?" Rogue queried in a harsh tone, she didn't stop, thrusting out at the bag with a right hook, then a left, a right, a left again, she swung and kicked again.  The punchbag came down, pulling down a large part of the ceiling concrete ceiling with it.

             Bobby glanced up at the ceiling and swallowed nervously, "uhm…pass," he said, getting up and leaving quicker than Rogue could try and apologise for snapping at him unnecessarily.  Rogue sighed, grabbed her towel from where she'd left it folded, and patted her face dry.  

             Moments later, Logan appeared, his small stocky stature stood framed in the doorway, arms folded, one ankle crossed over the other, his shoulder pressed against the steel border around the threshold, "y'know, its true what they say, the female of the species is deadlier than the male," he mused, glancing down at the punchbag lying across the floor, the chain and fixings still attached to a piece of the ceiling that had come down with it.

             Rogue rolled her eyes, "ha ha, so funny, I nearly bust a gut," she wiped the sweat off her neck, then reached for her water bottle, and took a long drink.

             "Haven't seen you this worked up since two Christmas's ago when Bobby made the mistake of sayin' you'd put on too many 'Christmas pounds'," Logan gave a slight smirk, his eyes glittering in slight amusement, he walked in.  "C'mon, kid, show me what you got."

             Rogue put her water bottle down, and wiped her mouth, she tucked a few stray hairs behind her ears, and stood at her full height, watching as Logan did the same.  He bowed slightly to her, and she did the same, and then she swung her right fist at him.

             Logan dodged, he thrust a punch at her stomach, he didn't need to hold back with the punch, her invulnerability barely let her feel a tap let alone the full strength of his fist, Rogue swung around, trying to catch him off guard with a kick, he caught her ankle, "nice try," he responded.

             Rogue broke free, swung her left fist at him, catching him in the jaw, she felt the Adamantium lacing his jawbone, it didn't hurt her fist too much, although it was slightly jarring just out incredibly well it absorbed the impact.  

             "Was that meant to hurt?" Logan mused, he ducked a right punch, he swung a kick at her, she tried to block, but failed lousily, and slightly staggered to the side unsteadily.

             "You're not trying hard enough," Logan's voice was like gravel, his eyes showed elements of the true cunning behind them, "focus!"

             "I am!" Rogue swung again, missing him, she was becoming tired, but she pressed herself onwards, she lashed out with her foot to his legs hoping to knock him down, but he jumped upwards just in time, using unsheathing his adamantium claws at precisely the right moment, his claws collided and imbedded themselves into the concrete ceiling, almost slicing through like butter.  With himself held stationary to the ceiling, he kicked her square in the chest knocking her completely over, he sheathed the claws again, and dropped to the floor in a catlike manner, he looked at her.

             They fought against each other for fifteen solid minutes, and Logan outwitted her at every opportunity – which she gave plenty of.  Finally, Logan had had enough, whatever she tried to assure, she was definitely not focused today, "You can do so much better than this…" he said, "You're letting your anger cloud your judgement.  In a real fight, that's gonna get you killed," he pointed out.

             Rogue sat upon the pile of exercise mats Bobby had been resting upon earlier, "I can't be killed, Logan, I'm invulnerable."

             "Don't always count on your powers bein' there to back you up, sometimes things don't work out that way," Logan frowned at her, "almost nine years I've been mentoring you on the art of combat, you can do so much better than this, I suggest you practice…"

             Rogue frowned, "I'm practicing, Wolverine," she claimed, she looked away from him stubbornly.

             "And that's another thing," Logan pointed at her, he knew the last thing she needed was someone to come up with a bad attitude towards her right now but he felt that pussyfooting around her like everyone had been doing ever since, "you can quit with your bad attitude right now, Rogue, we haven't had to see it in seven years, and just because Gumbo is back doesn't mean you have the right to start becoming all hostile towards us all again," he said, "I know you're stronger than that," he muttered, and with those final words, he set his jaw, cricked his neck, and then left the room.


	2. Chapter 2: Accident or No Accident

Dismal Angel 2010 - Episode 2

Chapter 2: Accident or No Accident

             Remy LeBeau glanced down into his glass of beer as he sat at a lonely corner table in a small earthy bar about two miles down the road from the Xavier estate known as 'Joe's'.  He wasn't drowning out his sorrows, but to be honest, he wasn't exactly celebrating his innocence either.  He lit a cigarette and took a long drag, the smoke filling his lungs, he closed his eyes, momentarily soothed by the tobacco – which right now felt like his only friend.

             "Bonjour, Monsieur LeBeau."

             Remy raised his ebony and ruby eyes as Hank McCoy approached, or rather, a very human looking Hank McCoy, who was obviously wearing an image-inducer to hide his true mutant form.  Remy watched Hank take a seat, Hank's large muscular bulk seemed out of place at the very small table.  Remy leaned back into the bench he was seated upon, and gave Hank a slight nod of acknowledgement.

             "You know, you really shouldn't leave the mansion until we've had a chance to clear everything up for you," Hank suggested, "you're still a wanted man," he glanced at a waitress who was in her forties who had happened to be passing, "Miss, if you please, two beers for me and my companion," he smiled kindly.

             She seemed taken aback by his politeness, Hank realised of course that 'Joe's' wasn't a place where people said 'please' very often.  The waitress disappeared off, Hank turned towards Remy once again.

             Remy really didn't know how to respond to Hank's comment, he didn't really want to admit he was finding it hard being back in the Xavier mansion with the rest of the X-Men, he didn't want to admit he still felt their suspicions upon him every time they looked at his face.  He'd told Kitty he didn't care, and to some degree he didn't, but when everyone was doing looking at him that way, thinking things about him, it was more than he could stand, at least for now.

             "Seven years is a long time, Remy," Hank said, as if realising what Remy was thinking just by the look upon his face, "things change…drastically for someone who just suddenly comes back into the picture after so long – you must be finding it difficult.  Is it bothering you much?" he asked sympathetically.

             Remy swallowed the last dregs from his beer glass, "on the contrary, I couldn't give a rats ass," he responded.  

A few moments silence fell between the two men, and the waitress returned with two beers, placing them on the table, not caring for the slight spillage she caused with her carelessness.  Hank paid and tipped her, and let her go on her way.  He raised the overflowing glass to his lips and took a small draught, then put the glass back down, reached for a tissue from his own pocket, and began to mop up the spillage from the table.  Remy watched him with absurd fascination, this was the kind of behaviour that could get a man severely beaten up in a bar such as this.  Luckily, there weren't so many patrons here tonight.

"Are you going to stay with the X-Men?" Hank asked, his blue eyes raised to Remy for a moment as he continued to dab the last of the spilled beer.

"Even if I wanted to, I couldn't, I got…" Remy paused for the word and thought of what Kitty had said earlier that day, "obligations."

"What obligations could a Thief possibly have?" Hank raised a thick well groomed eyebrow, staring at the man through his rectangular spectacles.

"You'd be surprised, Mon Ami," Remy responded, a slight smirk playing around his lips, and he suddenly felt more at ease than before.

"A woman?" Hank queried curiously, he tossed the beer soaked tissue into Remy's empty glass, then picked up his own glass and took a large swig.

"Many," Remy said, "but that's not the reason I won't stay," he picked up his own new glass of beer and took a drink.

"Ah, I think your claim of obligations is a falsity," Hank admitted, his voice clear and enthusiastic as ever, "I think you don't want to stay because of Rogue."

Remy's eyes widened a little on the mention of her name, but composed himself before Hank had the chance to see the effect it had on him, "why should Rogue bother me?"

"Well…you two were in love once," Hank pointed out, "and there must still be some hard feelings between you two despite your new acclaimed innocence."

"We were kids, Hank, just stupid kids," Remy glanced at his watch curiously, as if he had somewhere important to go soon. 

"Kids you may have well been," Hank leaned on the table, he his blue eyes fixed on Remy all the while, "but you still loved each other – so much you were determined not to let anything come between you," he pointed out.

Remy shook his head, "but I did, didn't I?  I let Jared come between us, I let his death come between us."

"You should not have run," Hank admitted.

Remy looked at him in disbelief, "I couldn't exactly stay, Mon Ami…" he took another large drink from his beer glass, "accident or no accident," he cleared his throat a little, "Rogue was gonna hate me either way – and if I stayed what I'd done would loom over her for the rest of her life," he looked at Hank, he stood up, "Thank you for the beer," he said quietly, "Au revoir."

Rogue picked half-heartedly at her the slice of Pizza on her plate, she and Kitty were sitting in a Bayville Pizza Hut, sharing a large vegetarian pizza.  Rogue wasn't hungry despite she'd spent most of the day exercising and had probably burned off more calories in two hours than she'd done in a life time.  

"Oh come on, Rogue, you've like, been picking at that same slice of pizza for the last half hour," Kitty pointed out, she herself munching away quiet contentedly.

"Sorry, not really hungry," Rogue pushed her slice of Pizza in front of her, "this whole thing lately has made me lose my appetite."

"You mean with Remy bein' back and all?" Kitty asked, she took a large swig of her Diet Pepsi, and then continued to eat.

"What do you think?" Rogue asked, she tucked her silky white streaks behind her ear, and looked at her friend expectedly.

"I talked to him today, somethin' tells me he's still in a bad mood with me," Kitty admitted after a moment, she thought regretfully at how she'd handled the situation at the lake earlier that day, "I preferred the old Remy…he was a lot more forgiving."

"I don't think he's changed one bit," Rogue admitted quietly, she looked down to her plate, her cheeks flushing red.  "He's still an arrogant asshole."

Kitty glanced up at her, she could still see Rogue regretted having accused Remy of murder, she found herself wondering now if Rogue and Remy had any chances of reconciling now that Remy was proven innocent.  "Are you guys going to get back together?" she asked, she was chewing on a piece of pizza crust.

Rogue looked at Kitty with an sceptical expression, "are you mad?" she asked raising an eyebrow, "Kitty, the guy ran out on me, I haven't heard from him in seven years!" Rogue gaped, "and you're asking me if I'm gonna get back together with him?  Jesus," Rogue shook her head in disbelief.

"Sorry," Kitty gave an apologetic smile.

"Besides…" Rogue began, and she took a full bite of her pizza this time, and finished eating it before continuing to speak, "I'm not the same girl who used to be head over heels for Remy," she reminded, "he was the phase when I was a lonely little goth girl thinking that I couldn't do any better," she reminded, "And I don't want to sound full of myself here, but I receive offers from men all the time," she explained, "and a lot of them are more gentlemanly than Remy LeBeau could ever dream to be."

"So you feel absolutely nothing for Remy now, then?" Kitty asked, she couldn't really believe that.  Somewhere in Rogue's heart surely, her feelings couldn't have really left.  Kitty felt that her friend must certainly be in denial.

"Nothing at all," Rogue admitted, she reached over and picked up a slice of garlic bread, although the minute she had said it she had to wonder herself if she had any feelings for Remy.  She found herself thinking that if it had been true, and she really did have no feelings for the man, why had she not punched him harder than she had when she'd attacked him in the small prison cell?  She'd held back on her punches.

But that was just force of habit, Rogue decided, I always hold back on my punches, scared I might really kill someone.

Kitty saw that Rogue was deep in though, and she flicked an olive at her friend playfully, "what are you thinking about?"

"Oh, nothin'," Rogue sighed, "Just tryin' to remember if it's tonight that my favourite tv show is on or tomorrow," she lied, she glanced over to a couple at a far away table who were kissing unabashedly over a pepperoni pizza, she sighed, wondering when she'd ever be able to live out that part of a romance.

"Something wrong?" Kitty asked.

Rogue shook her head, "Y'know I'm twenty-four years old, Kitty, and I've never really properly kissed a guy," she sighed, "Kinda pathetic, isn't it."

"One day, you will, you know that," Kitty said reassuringly.

"I've been an X-Man almost nine years and I've never yet managed to control my powers, Kitty, it's never gonna happen," Rogue took a sip of her soda, "Sometimes makes me wonder why I'm still even part of the X-Men when my powers are probably going to be out of control forever," she admitted dully.

Kitty felt that Rogue's dwelling on her powers was once again, a sign surely that Rogue was having thoughts about Remy.  This problem hadn't affected Rogue for some time, and Rogue rarely brought it up unless it was either Valentines day, or while watching an overly romantic movie.  

"Kissing is so overrated, anyway," Kitty lied, she didn't feel this way at all, but she'd say anything to make her friend feel better, "it's not all that romantic, its sloppy, its wet, its…ugh, trust me, you'd think it was gross."

             Rogue looked at Kitty, while Kitty hadn't had too many romantic relationships in the last seven years, she definitely had more experience in this field than Rogue had.  But Rogue refused to believe that kissing could be overrated, despite what Kitty was saying.  Rogue let her mind temporarily drift to a very swift kiss she'd shared with Remy in the Library of the mansion, when he'd been trying to prove how much he'd cared for her before walking out.  Their lips had barely touched long enough for it to class as a real kiss – her powers had begun to absorb instantaneously and he'd had to move back – but it was however, the closest she'd ever come to it – save the time she'd given Remy mouth to mouth when he'd almost drowned.

             Rogue finished her drink, "c'mon, its gettin' late, lets head back home."


	3. Chapter 3: A Private Moment

Dismal Angel 2010 - Episode 2

Chapter 3: A Private Moment

             Rogue parked her truck in the garage, the radio falling silent as she let the engine die, the windscreen was flecked with snow, the moment they'd pulled into the gates of the Xavier estate a soft drifting snowfall had begun to come down upon the truck.

             They climbed out, Rogue shut the door and locked the truck, they were surprised to turn and see Remy not so far away, kneeling by an old broken down motorbike that had remained there for the past eight years but had never truly worked.  Rogue had forgotten about it, it had almost seemed like part of the garage itself it had remained so long, something thaws simply there that was never noticed anymore.

             Remy was topless, dirt marks on his back, and some oily fingerprint upon his shoulder, his hair tied back carelessly so that one half of his ponytail was folded over and sticking out at an odd angle, while the rest hung freely down his back.  Rogue and Kitty glanced to each other, but neither woman said anything.

             Kitty rested her backside against the hood of the truck, "that thing hasn't run in like forever," she said as if this were something Remy didn't know, "You'll never get it workin'," she added casually.

             Remy snorted a little and glanced over his shoulder at Kitty, "just 'cause somethin' hasn't been in action for a while doesn't mean its past fixin', petit," he grunted, he glanced over to Rogue pointedly, then went back to what he was doing.  Kitty had the distinct feeling he'd been drinking all day, his tone had the same slight slur to it that he'd had since she'd seen him out by the lake.

             Kitty looked at him, "Professor Xavier would probably help you buy a new one, I mean… we'd all help put money towards one, it's the lease we could do after all we put you through…" she suggested, trying to sound friendly and caring.

             "I could steal a brand new one tonight if I wanted, petit, but I'd rather fix up this one," Remy retorted, grabbing a wrench from a nearby toolbox and beginning to remove a mechanism from the bike.

             Kitty shrugged at Rogue, then yawned, "well, I'm gonna hit the sack," she said, she headed towards the door leading into the Mansion itself, Rogue following slowly, every now and then throwing a sideways glance at Remy curiously.

             Rogue paused, "I left my jacket in the truck…" she suddenly realised.

             Kitty smiled knowingly, it seemed to have been almost deliberate, and Rogue could have retrieved the jacket any time.  Kitty was positive that Rogue wanted to fall back so she could have a private moment with Remy.  "Night," Kitty grinned, and she left at a quicker pace.

             Rogue headed back to the truck, she unlocked the door and leaned into grab her jacket from where she'd tossed it onto the back seat earlier that night.

             "You got a small screw driver?" she heard Remy's voice call over to her, she accidentally bumped her head against the roof of the car and made a face, it seemed to have been the first thing he'd said to her since the trial.

             "Hmm?" She came back out of the truck, and rested her arm against the open door, looking at him with a peculiar expression.

             "A small screwdriver...." Remy repeated.

             Rogue wasn't sure how to respond really, "I…uhm…maybe."

             Remy stood up, wiping his hands on a rag, "do you think you can maybe go look?" he raised an eyebrow, his eyes meeting hers, the way he was looking at her made her feel like a little girl, just a foolish little girl.

             Rogue quickly headed to the trunk of the truck, and unlocked it, she leaned down into it, searching through the toolbox she always kept in the truck in case of emergency, "uhm…I got loads here…" she trailed off, she felt Remy's presence behind her, and felt him lean down, his chest slightly pressed against her back as he reached forward and took hold of one of the small star-tipped screwdrivers from her toolbox.  

             "This will do," he breathed near her ear, his breath warm against her lobe, and the scent of beer from him started to overwhelm her, she felt her legs weaken, she had to hold onto the truck for support.  She told herself off for allowing herself to let that little sliver of brief contact, and the feeling of his hot breath against her ear actually stir her the way it had once seven years ago.

             He moved away as suddenly as he'd come over, heading over to the bike as if nothing had happened, Rogue was tempted to ask what he thought he was doing acting like that towards her, it was almost as if nothing had ever happened seven years ago.  She shivered, and hugged herself as a cold feeling came all over her, she stood watching him inquisitively.  

             What's goin' on in his mind?  She wondered, studying every single movement.  She remembered the last time she'd seen him work on this bike, it had been the day of his daughters funeral.  Sadly, Rogue realised if Gabrielle had not died, she'd be seven years old, and she wondered somewhat if she'd even look like Remy, or if at all Gabrielle might like her as a surrogate mother.

             Remy was quite aware he was being watched, he'd rather she didn't, he'd spent enough time being looked at in that strange suspicious way by everyone else, and she was the last straw, "what are you lookin' at me like that for?" he asked, trying to keep his tone, "don't tell me after seven years you still find me irresistible to look at," he turned back to pay attention to what he was doing.

             Rogue felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment as he said these words, and she swallowed her nervousness, "don't flatter yourself, LeBeau," she said firmly, "you got about as much charm as a housefly and you have absolutely no effect on me."

             "If you say so," Remy responded, quite amused.  "A housefly, eh?"

             "Oh you know, in that same way a housefly buzzes around gettin' in peoples way and you can't quite get rid of it no matter how hard you swing the newspaper at it…" Rogue explained smugly.

             Remy kept his back to her, but he was grinning so wide in his amusement he was sure even the back of his head must have been showing it.  He composed himself, remembering their situation, no matter how much she still enticed him, no matter how beautiful she still was and no matter how much her humour appealed to him, he still had to remind himself she had labelled him a murderer.

             "As I recall, no one's been swinging newspapers in Remy's direction today," Remy remarked sounding more smug than even Rogue had, "throwin' dirty looks maybe."

             "If looks could kill…" Rogue began, "You'd be six feet under by now," she felt rather impressed by her own quick wit.

             "If looks were sex, I'd get laid a hundred times a day," Remy remarked, and this time his comment afterwards was a direct attempt to jar her, his eyes met hers and he gave his sexiest grin, "but t'be honest, I don't need looks for that."

             Rogue's mouth fell open in a small 'o'.  She recomposed herself quickly, and drew her breath, "I find that hard to believe, considerin' it took you over a year to even touch me," she smirked, "You've probably slept with three women in the last seven years," Rogue mused.

             Remy looked at her, "I lost count of the number of women I've had," he remarked gleefully, he got up, wiping his hands on the dirty rag again, "do you want to add to that rather large number?"

             "In your dreams, LeBeau," Rogue shot back at him, her eyes narrowing and her brows knitting into a frown.

             Remy's reaction was quick, he feigned a look of shock "who told you about those?" he mused, and walked off, leaving the garage all together through the doorway leading into a mansion hallway.

             Rogue frowned, she was definitely going to have to do something about Remy LeBeau's attitude if he was going to be staying here much longer, she ran out after him, he heard her footsteps behind him and slowed down to a stop, "You are still a senseless narcissistic asshole!" she wanted to get out every single bad thing she'd ever thought about him in the last seven years, but she had a feeling that might take all night.  Despite his innocence, she wasn't about to just forgive him – he had still run out on her, and that was something that was unforgivable – and in Rogue's opinion, deserved about as much punishment as he should have received if he had been guilty of murder.

             "Thank you," he turned and grinned at her as if she'd just complimented him, he gave one of his infamous gracious bows, his hair spilling over his bare shoulder as he did so.

             "Quit your smart assed attitude, or I'm gonna shove my foot right up your ass!" Rogue fumed, stepping closer to him, she wanted to hit him, but something held her back.  Maybe it was the thought of what the others might think if she did.  Or maybe it was her own mind telling her that if she hit him, it would only show she was letting him get under her skin.

             "Who told you I'm into that?" he feigned another shocked expression, and then smirked, "night, Rogue," he sang in a sing song, then wandered off into the darkness of the hallway, out of sight completely, leaving Rogue with her eyes and mouth wide open, she couldn't believe she'd let him have the last word.  She frowned, he was more infuriating than he'd ever been.  She kicked a potted plant in the hallway that was standing in the way of a beam of moonlight from a nearby window, she watched it tip over, earth spilling out.

             "Shit," she muttered under her breath, and sighed, kneeling down to clean the mess up.


	4. Chapter 4: Danger Room

Dismal Angel 2010 - Episode 2

Chapter 4: Danger Room

             Remy LeBeau stepped into the danger room control annex at 5.30am, all was quiet, the lights were left on low, he stepped over to the control panel and looked out of the large glass panel windows down into the danger room itself.  He glanced down to the control panel, trying to remember how to operate the Danger Room.  Most of the computers had changed and he'd never taken much notice when Ororo had tried to teach him when he'd been younger.  He reached towards a lever and pushed it upwards, the danger room lit up and seemed to spring to life, the sound of whizzing machinery beginning to drone.  The last exercise the X-Men seemed to have been on was still programmed into the computer, a large sentinel seemed to appear as if out of nowhere, a holographic projection almost so convincing it might have been the real thing.  

Remy sucked in a breath of anticipation and he set the exercise to medium, he didn't want to push his luck, the computer monitor nearby had flashing text reading 'set session time'.  Remy typed in 30.00.  He glanced at a clock set in the corner of the monitor and set the session to start totally in two minutes.  A good half hour seemed like a decent enough time to practise his fighting skills against the robot.  

He adjusted the belt buckle on a very plain black leather uniform he'd found in one of the supply rooms in the basement area, and he zipped the top half up to the neck, swallowing a little at how tight it felt, he realised whoever owned this uniform was probably a size smaller than he himself was.  He took the small elevator down, and entered into the danger room, he heard the sentinel starting up, its robotic voice booming through the empty room.

Remy didn't listen to a thing it announced, he watched carefully, the sentinel Robot raised one arm, an impressive assembly of guns beginning to raise out of a panel on its forearm.  He ducked and rolled just in time as red lasers shot at him, missing him by barely inches.

The fight had begun.

Rogue yawned as she stepped down into the danger room control annex, it was early, but there was always a Danger Room session starting at six am for someone, and she liked to be early for them, so that she'd be well briefed for whatever situation she might come across.  She was surprised to see that beyond the large glass windows, there was a sentinel, shooting lasers from its arm, Remy LeBeau dodging, tucking and rolling, leaping out of the way, every single laser missing him by mere centimetres.

Rogue watched him, it seemed his technique had improved over the years, Remy had always been a remarkable athlete, but in the seven years that had passed, it seemed he'd doubled his skill, she'd never seen him move so fast or accurately, as if he'd trained for this one danger room session all his life.

His long hair trailed behind him in a ponytail as he ran, he somersaulted out of the way of yet another blast.  Without even being in the same room as Remy LeBeau, Rogue could tell he was too overconfident.  She chewed her lip, watching him.  

"Lets see how confident he is when I turn this session on full blast," She smirked a little, she reached for the lever and thrust it upwards to its full potential, she heard a loud whirring sound as the machinery began to process the new commands.  In the Danger Room nine more sentinels appeared.

Remy spun around as he found himself surrounded by sentinels, their red eyes beginning to light up one by one, and one by one they extended weaponry on their arms, tentacles sliding from the palms of large robotic hands.  "What the…" he found himself asking, he began to panic, he could handle one on his own, but ten?

Blasts headed his way, he jumped, the floor blasted apart with it, the heat of the lasers making the metal floor hot to even run upon.

Remy swallowed, looking around, "Uh…Danger Room!" he called out to the Danger Rooms voice recognition system, he ran through the legs of a sentinel, one of their fists tried to smash him, and barely missed, he ducked out of the way gasping.  "Danger Room!  Terminate Session!!"

"Request Denied," A robotic voice commented as if out of nowhere.

"Don't fucking deny me!  Terminate session!" he yelled, a sentinel foot barely missed him, a laser grazed his arm, burning through the leather as if it were clingfilm on a sandwich, "OVERRIDE SESSION!" he yelled.

"Request Denied."

Remy realised he didn't have any cards, he hadn't expected to need to use projectiles, all he'd wanted to do was work on his acrobatic skills in avoiding assault, he hadn't even brought his bo-staff for this very reason.  "Danger Room!" he called out as he was running, the floor was becoming hotter, and the sweat was pouring from him now at the heat that was building up in the danger room, "requesting Authorisation to override session!" he called out, "Designate Gambit, access number two-five-zero-seven-seven-zero!" he found himself absurdly congratulating himself on remembering his pass-number from seven years previous.

"Mutant Gambit Access Denied, Revoked third of November two-thousand-and-three," the Computer responded.  Remy despaired, of course he'd be revoked, he wasn't one of the X-Men anymore, why should he still have access to their systems…

Remy felt something slam him from behind and he slammed into a wall nearby, "Computer, TERMINATE THE FUCKING SESSION!" he cried out in pain.

Rogue realised he had enough, she reached towards the lever to pull it down, only it seemed stuck, she tugged at it with all her strength and it wasn't budging, "oh shit…" she whispered, "computer, terminate session!" she said quickly to the voice activated computer.

"Unable to Process Command.  Session set for thirty minutes, time now five-forty-eight am – fourteen minutes remaining," the computer responded.

"What?!" Rogue demanded, "don't fuck around, computer, terminate the session," Rogue tried hitting buttons, she began to panic.  She'd thought it would be funny watching Remy panic, and now she was becoming more panicked than possibly he was.

"Rogue…what are you doing?" Ororo had entered the room, her long hair tied back behind her head in a tight bun, her face severe with concern.

Rogue spun around, "Ororo…I…I accidentally nudged the Danger Room Level lever all the way up…" she lied quickly, "it won't turn off!"

Ororo pushed Rogue slightly out of the way, she quickly pressed three buttons simultaneously, "Computer, Requesting Authorisation to Terminate Session," she said quickly, "Designate Storm, Authorisation Number six-three-two-two-nine-eight-six."

"Unable to Process command.  Session set for thirty minutes, time now five-forty-nine am – thirteen minutes remaining," the Computer replied.

Ororo frowned, "This is a timed session?!" she demanded.

"I don't know! I wasn't the one who set the program!" Rogue cried at her, she thought this was a ridiculous question to ask at a time like this, she glanced into the danger room, Remy was up in the air suspended by a tentacle from a Sentinels hand that had wrapped around his wrist.

Ororo pressed down on another button, "Computer, reboot danger room."

"Password required."

Ororo frowned, "Omega-Beta-four-four-two."

Everything shut down automatically, the lights dimmed, the sound of machinery winding down sounded, and Remy fell down to the floor as the sentinels vanished one by one.

             Remy gasped in pain, he tried to get up, twinges of back pain from years before seemed to return as if on cue, he lay there for some moments, trying to figure out what was wrong with him, or what had happened to the danger room session.  He didn't understand it at all.

             Ororo Munro rushed in to the danger room moments later, she fell to her knees beside Remy, "are you alright?" she asked.

             Remy tried to get up, "I think so…dunno…what happened," he put one arm up, wiping the sweat from his brow with his sleeve.

             Rogue arrived two seconds later, "I…I nudged the lever accidentally…" she chewed her lip, "I…"

             Ororo looked over to Rogue, "that lever cannot be nudged accidentally, Rogue," she said angrily.

             Remy remembered this piece of information also, he'd been taught this during his last few weeks as one of the X-men.  He looked to Rogue, wondering if it was possible she'd deliberately changed the session commands just to get him hurt.  He looked at her suspiciously, and leaned up slowly with Ororo's help.

             "It was an accident!" Rogue's eyes were wide, almost tearing up, so that – to Remy – she appeared almost like a child being scolded by a mother or a teacher.

             "For now, I don't want to hear any explanations," Ororo pulled Remy to stand, she watched the pain in his face as he moved, "go find Beast, he should be up," Ororo instructed of Rogue, "Tell him we shall be in the hospital wing."

             Rogue stood silent for a moment, looking at Remy, he looked exhausted and hurt, and she found herself realising how foolish and precarious her actions had been.  He could have been killed, she'd thought it'd be funny to see him squirm and panic in the Danger Room but now she realised it was no laughing matter.  

             "Look…we don't need to get Hank involved," Remy pulled away from Ororo, holding his arm, "it'll be fine," he suggested to her.

             "You need to be checked over by a doctor…you might have sustained some serious injury," Ororo stated calmly.

             "I don't want to take this any further," Remy murmured, he pretended his ego had been bruised, truth was, he didn't want to see Rogue going through any disciplinary action with the Professor for having endangered his life, "kind of embarrassing, really," he kept his voice low, "I think the others would find this reason enough to talk about me behind my back, and I've had enough of that to last a life time…can we keep it between ourselves?"

             "Remy this needs to officially go on record, Rogue nearly had you killed—" Ororo tried.

             "Look, her strength is so much more uncontrollable than either me or you," Remy pointed out, he made sure his laser burn wound was out of Ororo's vision, "she's capable of makin' that kind of mistake accidentally…" Remy said, "I told her to put it up just a little…she probably pushed a bit too hard is all," he explained.  "You know as well as I do that she doesn't know her own strength."

             Ororo looked at him, "You asked her to increase the session?"

             "Well, you know the rules," Remy said, "No one is meant to use the danger room unsupervised," he said, he nodded in Rogue's direction pointedly as if to say she'd been the one supervising him.  "Do I look stupid enough to go into the danger room alone?  I don't think so."

             Ororo looked to them both rather suspiciously, but let it drop, "alright," she finally said, "Rogue…we'll let this drop…but please be careful in future."

             Rogue gave a nod, and looked at Remy, Ororo began to walk off, Rogue wasn't sure if she'd report this to the Professor or not despite the agreement to keep it between themselves.  

             Rogue looked at him, "why did you lie?" she looked around quickly to make sure Ororo was completely gone.

             "I lied?" he asked with an expression as if he didn't know what she was talking about, he glanced to his arm where the laser had hit him, Ororo had failed to notice this or she would have had him consult Hank.  

             "You know what I'm talkin' about," Rogue hugged herself insecurely.

             "Do I?" Remy asked, he touched the burn gingerly and winced at the slight pain.

             "You're hurt…" Rogue realised, she reached out as if to take his arm to check the wound herself, but Remy recoiled more quickly than she could reach him.

             "I've been burned before," Remy responded all too quickly, seeming quite disgruntled, "don't pretend you're worried about me," he mumbled, and headed for the door without saying another word.

             Rogue let him go and sighed to herself, he'd certainly done her a favour when he'd lied to Ororo, but she wondered if she was going to be expected to repay the favour later, and if so, what would it be?  


	5. Chapter 5: McDuggins

Dismal Angel 2010 - Episode 2

Chapter 5: McDuggins

             Kitty Pryde entered into the hospital wing on the search for a mild painkiller, she'd had a headache since the moment she'd woken up at five am.  She was surprised to see the back of Remy LeBeau.  He was leaning into a deep cabinet, searching through boxes, a lockpick was jutting out of the lock of one of the wooden doors.

             "What are you doing?" she asked.

             "Lookin' for some bandages or somethin'," he muttered, leaning further into the deep cabinet.

             "Hank doesn't keep bandages in there," Kitty said, she rubbed her forehead a little, "he keeps all his stethoscopes and stuff in there," she gestured towards where Remy was looking.

             "Oh…" Remy leaned out, Kitty noted at once the large burn on his arm that was showing through a hole in the leather uniform he was wearing, "what happened?"

             "Accident in the Danger Room, long story," Remy sighed.

             Kitty walked over and closed the cabinet doors, yanking out the lockpick and handing it to Remy, "Here," she said and rolled her eyes, "You should have that looked at by Hank, what is it?  A laser burn?"

             "I don't need mollycoddling for a minor abrasion," Remy said sternly.

             Kitty looked at him, "sit down, I'll do it."

             Remy rolled his eyes, "Look, I just need a bandage, I don't want anyone dealing with me right now," he muttered coldly.

             "Shut up and sit down," Kitty said sternly, the thumping going on in her head making her attitude a little harsher than it usually tended to be.  She unlocked a cabinet with a set of keys Remy had noted she'd taken from her pocket, and she pulled out a few bandages and a dressing, "So…who were you in the Danger Room with?" 

             "Doesn't matter," Remy said, he didn't want to have to explain himself, he sat down slowly upon a wooden chair near a counter.  Kitty moved over, he noted she had a bottle of some nasty looking chemical that had a brownish tint to it, "What is that?" he asked.

             "Just some anti-sceptic to stop the wound from becoming infected," from a box Kitty retrieved a pair of surgical gloves and pulled them on with a strange snapping sound that left Remy with strange memories of those embarrassing and uncomfortable checkups at Doctors where you were always touched in the least likely places.

             "It looks like it's going to sting," Remy remarked, making a face.

             "You are, like, such a big baby," Kitty mused, she spilled a little of the brown liquid onto a cotton swab, "take that top off."

             Remy sighed and unzipped the top, sliding it off carefully as to not let the leather brush against the already burning wound.  Kitty took a hold of him firmly under the arm and began to dab at the wound with the cotton, he winced, "so…you training to be a doctor or something?" he raised his eyebrow at Kitty.

             "No, I did do a little first aid training though," Kitty admitted smiling proudly at herself.

             "Oh," Remy remarked, he really wasn't interested, he tried not to focus on the pain too much, it felt like Kitty was pouring some kind of acid into the burn on his arm, which already looked quite blistered and raw.

             Remy slumped in the chair a little, still wincing in pain, sucking in his breath through clenched teeth, lips curled back.

             "Y'know, you should come with us tonight," Kitty said, she continued to deal with his wound with careful hands, "Every Friday night most of us go to McDuggins," she sounded almost excited all of a sudden, her blue eyes widening a little, Remy watched her curiously.

             "What's McDuggins?" Remy raised an eyebrow.

             "It's a bar," Kitty said, "four miles west of here," she admitted, "we all go there…play pool, drink, have fun…sometimes there's even dancing," she admitted, "and it's hilarious watching Logan beat every single guy there at pool."

             "I'd rather not," Remy admitted.  Socialising with the X-Men didn't appeal to him in the slightest right now.  

             "Oh come on, Remy, I know you're finding it hard and that the others are still lookin' at you like you're guilty…if you keep your distance and don't let them get to know you, how do you expect them to accept you?"

             "I don't need to be accepted, I'm not staying with the X-Men, remember?" Remy pointed out, "I'm only here until Xavier somehow manages to clear my criminal record – which so far he hasn't lifted a finger to do."

             "Maybe you should stay," Kitty admitted thoughtfully, wrapping a bandage carefully around his arm.  "Rejoin the X-Men…hey, maybe you could teach French here at the institute?"

             "Oh yeah, Rogue would just love that, wouldn't she?" Remy remarked sarcastically, "she'd love my returning to the X-Men like I'm sure she'd love to be slapped in the face with a rotting fish."

             "Just come with us, tonight, Remy, it'll be fun, I promise," Kitty smiled.  
             "I have no wish to socialise with any of you right now, Petit," Remy wished she would let him be, he had no wish to discuss this with her.  He had more important things to think about – like getting out of the mansion before his passion for Rogue began to develop again.  He'd spent a long time working towards forgetting about her, he wasn't about to allow himself to feel too strongly for her again.

             "Will you just think about it?" Kitty asked, "we can celebrate your innocence," she finished bandaging his shoulder, and stepped back to survey her work.

             "Fine, I'll think about it," Remy responded, giving a sigh of defeat, realising that at least if he admitted he would, she'd leave him alone.  It didn't mean he'd have to go, after all, did it?

             What am I doing here?  Remy thought miserably at nine-thirty-pm that night as he stepped through the large door leading into McDuggins, a rustic bar that reminded him slightly of 'Joe's', the place he'd been drinking at these last few days.  Only the atmosphere at McDuggins was slightly more inviting and friendly.

             Ororo and Kitty were sitting at the bar, Ororo seeming a lot more lighthearted than she seemed most other times, a smile on her face and a glass of red wine delicately held in her hand.  Kitty seemed to be supping some kind of blue-tinted cocktail, and her eyes glittered as she spoke excitedly to Ororo, every now and then a high pitched girlish laugh ringing out over the bar, mingling with the laughs of other patrons nearby.

             Remy pushed his sunglasses further up his nose to hide his mutant eyes, he glanced across the rest of the bar, Logan was near a pool table, watching another patron take his shot, Logan looked more than confident, while the patron kept glancing towards the wad of money set on the corner of the table that it seemed evident both men were playing for.

             Others from the mansion – Bobby Drake, Hank McCoy (complete with image inducer) and Kurt Wagner (also complete with image inducer) were standing by a jukebox that Remy suspected was even older than he was.  Kurt was picking songs, whilst Bobby was making noises of disgust.  

             Remy slipped into a darker area of the bar, took a seat at an unoccupied booth and watched the scene, his presence unnoticed.  When Rogue stepped out of the ladies room, her long hair hanging in loose silken tousled curls, Remy's eyes raised, and he watched her fixatedly, without even realising it, letting a deep unhappy sigh pass his lips.

             He watched her wander over to Logan who was standing watching the patron still taking his shot, Rogue rested her arm on Logan's shoulder casually, she stood leaning against him, and she spoke to him, a slight grin on her face.  Remy felt pangs of guilt surging through him, she looked happy – the happiest he'd remembered her ever seeming.  No longer an insecure teenager with gothic wear and thick eyeliner, now a stunningly beautiful woman standing there wearing flared hip hugging jeans and a cobalt blue top with embroidered sleeves, thin white cotton gloves protecting her delicate hands.

             Rogue laughed softly at something Logan said, and she helped himself to his bottle of beer which had been resting upon the edge of the pool table.  She seemed more than unaware that she was being watched not only by Remy, but by several men.  Remy realised that the once insecure girl he'd known was now the kind of woman that men would turn and gawk at the moment she walked into a room.  The kind of woman who had the ability – without even realising it – to light up a room with her presence.

             "Ahem."

             Remy had been unsure how long he'd been watching Rogue for, he blinked and turned to his side, Kitty was standing by the table, a freshly opened bottle of beer in her hand, she placed it down upon the table, indicating it was for him.

             "How long have you been here?" Kitty asked.

             "Short while," Remy picked the bottle up and took a quick swig, "didn't feel much like including myself in your socialising just yet…I think my presence would make everyone uncomfortable," he admitted.

             Kitty took a seat, Remy noticing she'd carried her own drink over with her, she looked over at him, "have you thought any more about what I said?" she asked quietly.

             "Hmmm?" he glanced back over to Rogue again, who was congratulating Logan with a hug for winning the game of pool – and a good three hundred dollars by the looks of it.

             Kitty traced invisible patterns on the tabletop with her bare finger absently, "coming back to the X-Men."

             Remy made a face, "I'm not exactly X-Men material…never have been really," he responded.

             "I think you're underestimating yourself," Kitty said, "I think the Professor would like it if you stayed," she admitted, "he hasn't said anything…but I think he feels kind of guilty that he judged you really quickly too."

             "It's an occupational hazard, petit," Remy took a cigarette out and lit it, "thief shouldn't expect to be trusted if he gonna be what he is," he remarked, he glanced back to Rogue, who was standing playing pool on her own now, Logan had apparently abandoned the table after having won.

             Kitty glanced over her shoulder to see who Remy was looking at then looked back to him, "why don't you talk to her?" she asked suggestively.

             Remy snorted in contempt for that idea.

             "Buy her a drink," Kitty said, smiling softly.

             "Believe me, me and her had an argument last night, I'm likely to get a drink thrown in my face tonight if I go talk to her," Remy mused, he took another drink of his beer, "the last thing I need is to buy her a drink so she has somethin' to throw over me."

             "Nah," Kitty responded, "she's in good spirits, she's had a few drinks already…there's no better time to try and talk to her than when she's in a good drunken mood."

             "She actually has good moods?  I don't think I ever got to see one of those in all the time I ever went out with her," Remy took a long drag of his cigarette, and deliberately blew the smoke in Kitty's direction.

             Kitty gave a cough, "ugh, bad habit," she grabbed the cigarette from his hand and stubbed it out into a nearby tacky looking ashtray, "Just talk to her, alright?  I know you want to, or you wouldn't be looking at her like that," Kitty got up, "Just…be nice…and don't argue with her, and I'm sure it'll go fine."

             Remy sighed, "fine."


	6. Chapter 6: Over Pool

Dismal Angel 2010 - Episode 2

Chapter 6: Over Pool

             Remy approached Rogue with his heart thudding in his chest the way it always had whenever he'd been near her all those years ago, and he tried to ignore the memories of holding her close to him as if it were the only thing that would still the anxious beat of his troubled heart.  

             Rogue was leaning over the pool table, skilfully lining up a shot, one eye closed, her hair dangling over the green felt.

             Remy placed the bottle of beer he'd bought for her upon the table edge at her side, and she stopped what she was doing, turned and looked at it, then slightly over her shoulder at him, her expression curious, but she didn't seem as angry as he would have expected her to be.

             "Thought you might be thirsty," Remy said sullenly, trying to hide his emotion and succeeding pretty well.

             Rogue finished her shot perfectly, and leaned up, placing her hand upon the bottle slowly, looking at him, "thank you…I guess…" she said quietly, she remembered the fight from the night before vaguely but tried to ignore the anger that surged through her when she did.  He didn't look in the mood to fight, and she wasn't in the mood either.

             Remy watched her take a sip, he lowered his head, looking above the frames of his sunglasses at her, "how good are you at pool?" he asked, taking a cue from the mount on the wall.

             "Better than you'll ever be, Gumbo," Rogue smirked.

             Remy chalked up the tip of his cue, "how much do you want to wager on that?" he reached into his pocket, pulling out a cracked leather wallet.

             "How much do you have?" Rogue put her hand on her hip, leaning on the cue.

             "Enough for a hotel room, a hooker and a cab ride home," he responded with a smirk.

             Rogue made a face of disgust but took a twenty dollar bill from her pocket and slapped it onto the corner of the table.

             Remy wasn't impressed, "that it?  You sure aren't convincing me of your supposed skill with mere pocket money," he looked to her with a raised eyebrow.

             She took another twenty from her pocket and placed it down, he shook his head.

             "Fine, how much," she sighed, but composed herself, winning at pool might just be a good way to put this guy in his place.

             "How much do you have?" Remy queried curiously.

             "I don't carry much money," Rogue responded haughtily, "I only brought eighty with me."

             "Fine, eighty it is," Remy said, "tell you what, I'll throw in a hundred and sixty, if you win you triple your profit," he smirked.

             Rogue smirked, she was going to enjoy wiping that confident smirk off of his face, "I'm looking forward to it."

             Rogue was as good a player of pool as she'd let on, which gave Remy the distinct impression she'd been spending too much time with Logan in Bars learning every trick she could.  Fortunately, Remy had about as much knowledge of the game than she had, which made for an interesting challenge from across the felt.  And soon, as the game went on for longer, the X-Men who were in the bar soon found themselves surrounding the table, watching, and betting on who they thought would win. 

             Soon, the last few shots were coming into play, Rogue was pressed against the table, stretched out, cue in her hand, lining her shot.

             "Take your time," Logan mentored her.

             "I never knew you were good at pool, Remy," Kitty said to Remy as they watched Rogue carefully lining her shot just right, her expression focused.

             "What you don't know about me could fill a warehouse," Remy responded, he took a swig of one of the many bottles of beer he'd had within the hour, he watched Rogue take her shot, she'd sunk all her balls but one, the eight ball remained near a corner – a perfect opportunity to win the game.

             "You've almost won, but don't get too confident, remember, just because it looks like it's gonna go in easy don't for one minute assume it will," Logan warned Rogue.

             "Right, I get it," Rogue rolled her eyes at him, she glanced up to Remy curiously to see what he was doing.  He was watching her, he'd long since taken his sunglasses off and he was looking at her with those incredibly intense eyes of his.   She felt strangely drawn into them, and tried to come to her senses as she took her shot, the eight ball slammed against the very edge of the corner pocket but missed and sped away.  They all heard her swear under her breath, and watched her down a shot of whisky that Logan had brought for her.

             Remy grinned, "got too confident, did you?" he asked, he stretched across the table, without even lining his shot carefully, he sunk his two remaining balls effortlessly in one go.  An applaud rung out around them, he grinned.

             "How could you have missed that shot?" Logan muttered near Rogue's ear.

             "I don't know…I had it lined perfectly…" Rogue blushed and she folded her arms stubbornly as she watched Remy slip the cue behind his back for a trick shot that sunk the eight ball in the right corner pocket.  She looked away, pursing her lips together in anger.

             Remy smirked, "You were good, but I'm better," he put the cue away, and grabbed the wad of money from the corner of the pool table, "keep practising," he shoved the wad into his pocket, and headed for the door.

             Rogue watched him go, "hey, I'm gonna go home, I'm kinda broke now," she said to the others, she picked her brown leather jacket up from a chair she'd left it hanging on.

             There was a soft laugh and people chided that she shouldn't have bet all her money, but she shrugged nonchalantly, and replied "it's only money" with a smile, then headed outside into the cold winter night.  Remy was walking down the road, she headed after him.

             "Where did you learn to play pool like that?" she asked as she caught up with him.

             "I have friends who own a pool hall in the Big Easy," Remy replied casually.

             "Don't you have a jacket?" Rogue asked of him, she was in the middle of pulling on her own.

             "All my stuff is back in Illinois," Remy responded, "And there's no point in sendin' for it, is there?" he pointed out.

             Rogue looked at him, "you aren't staying then?" she buttoned her jacket up, and smoothed it down a little.

             Remy shrugged, "I got places to go, people to see, houses to rob," he said, with the kind of general malaise that seemed to suggest he didn't want to leave at all.

             Rogue rolled her eyes at him, walking beside him, staggering a little in her drunkenness, "still a thief, huh?"

             "Once a thief, always a thief," Remy reached into his pocket and pulled out the wad of money, "here…" he took a hold of her hand and dropped it into her palm, he pushed her fingers around the money so she held it tight, then he let go and continued to walk.

             "What…??" Rogue looked at him confusedly, then to the wad of money in her hand.

             "You should have won," Remy remarked, "I cheated."

"You didn't cheat…I watched your every move…" Rogue trailed off, she thought back quickly, trying to determine if there had been any clue of his cheating, but she'd been watching him like a hawk all night, he'd definitely never had any opportunity to cheat whatsoever.

"I charmed you," Remy seemed rather satisfied.

             "You what?!" Rogue demanded, her mouth dropping.

             "When you looked at me, I charmed you with my eyes," he said, "distracted you so you'd miss the shot," He walked heedlessly along, crossing a road still busy with traffic, and managing to successfully get to the other side without being hit.

             "Why you—" Rogue frowned, she took to the sky and flew across after him, landing upon the paving behind him as he walked.  "I should kick your ass!"

             "We're even now," Remy responded, his voice thick.

             "For?"  
             "Well, you nearly got me killed this mornin'," Remy shoved his hands back in his pockets against the cold, "And I embarrassed you by having you lose at pool in front of your friends," he smirked, "and maybe I taught you a lesson too."

             "Oh, and what would that be?" Rogue folded her arms again, standing crossly, frowning at him, her anger building up.

             "When you get over confident, you lose," he looked at her, "I believe a lesson you need to learn before you try to teach others the same thing, wouldn't you agree?"

             Rogue just stared at him, he was lit up by the street lights, his breath was misting against the air.  Despite his arrogance, and despite her hatred for everything he'd ever put her through, the man had never looked so attractive in all the time she'd known him.  Her heart began to thud rapidly in her chest until she thought it might explode its way out.  Butterflies swooped and fluttered lightly in her stomach, and her mind filled with memories of holding onto him as he held her back, remembering how it felt with her head pressed against his chest.

Rogue stepped forward, tentatively, until she was inches away from him, and she slid her hand behind his neck drawing him a little closer, so their lips were a mere centimetre from touching.

             Remy pushed her away exasperatedly, moving backwards as he did so, "what the fuck are you doing?" he asked in a voice of complete bewilderment that was tainted with something reminiscent of anger.

             Rogue stammered, "I…I…uhm…I thought…"

             "What, you thought that I wanted you back?" he asked, "You labelled me a murderer.  Not exactly the romance of the century, is it?"

             "I…" Rogue looked down, "Yes…I did call you a killer," her cheeks flushed hot despite the cold air around her.

             "And you think that after you came in fumin' ready to beat the shit out of me for a crime you didn't even check I really did commit first…that now just because you know I'm innocent that everything is okay?" he looked at her, a little hurt, "what makes you think I'm so eager to take you back?  What makes you even think I could still love you after you ratted me out to the police for murder?" he looked to her.

             Rogue swallowed nervously, "I…uhm…" she tucked her hair behind her ear, she couldn't look at him, she felt so foolish as to think for one moment that he'd be alright with her being near him.  She wondered if she hadn't had so much to drink tonight perhaps if she would have moved so close to him at all, thinking maybe alcohol had clouded her judgement incredibly.

             "Maybe you shouldn't drink so much," Remy seemed to pick up on what she was thinking just by her expression, he turned one again and began to walk ahead, footsteps loud against the empty street.

             Rogue followed him, "like you haven't spent the last four days drinking non stop!?" she demanded.

             "Maybe I have reasons!" he stopped and spun around, glaring at her spitefully, he stood in shadow, his eyes glowing vividly against the darkness, "I've had to live seven years with the label 'murderer' above my head."

             "That's no reason to drink like a fish," Rogue folded her arms.

             "What business is it of yours why I drink like a fish!  I'm not the one throwing myself all over someone who up until four days ago, was the bane of my existence, am I?" He pointed at her accusingly.

             Rogue drew her breath, the cold air filling her lungs, she tried to calm herself, but she wanted to scream at him, "don't start with the woe is me crap again!" she yelled at him, "I had enough of that when me and you were going out!"

             Remy turned and walked away, "you can never stand it when you're not the only one with 'problems', can you?" he kept walking, shoulders hunched against the cold.

             Rogue followed quickly, and reached out to grab his bare arm to stop him – she had a few things she wanted to say to him that might put him in his place.  In her haste, the exposed skin of her wrist brushed against the bare flesh of his upper arm and she felt almost as if she were being electrocuted, her body seized and images began to rush before her eyes like a badly edited film with pointless blank frames spliced in.  

Her powers began to kick in with fierce intensity. At first, it was like watching a movie on fast forward, everything going by so fast it was impossible to distinguish what the images were, then it slowed considerably.  Dark faceless figures looming in a doorway, dark grey walls, bad lighting, heavy breathing, gasping, panic surging, dizziness, delirium, cold cement against her back.  Voices she couldn't make out that didn't seem very familiar at all, maniacal laughter ringing out as if echoing in a large room.  Liquid silver dribbling through a keyhole, and then the memories faded almost as quickly as they had manifested in her head.

             Rogue yanked her hand away breathlessly, holding her wrist where it was still stinging from the sparks she'd felt from him, Remy was holding his bare arm, looking at her as if she'd just tried to kill him, his eyes – still glowing – were even wider than before.

             "What was that…?" Rogue whispered, realising they'd been his memories she'd just seen inside her own head, as if they might have once been her own.

             "What was what?!" Remy snapped, he was breathing heavy, he looked jarred and distressed.

             Rogue wasn't sure what to think of what she'd just seen from his head, none of it made sense, "What was that in your head…?"

             "Nothing was in my head, nothing…" he tried to soften his voice, "don't try to touch me again…" Remy warned.

             "I felt sparks, Remy…" Rogue winced, her wrist still smarting, "How did you do that…"

             "It happens…I don't know why," Remy responded, "when that happens, best thing to do is to not touch me," he uttered coldly.

             "Are your powers evolving?" Rogue asked, gasping for breath in the cold.

             "I don't know, can we drop this already?" he demanded impatiently, "I'm cold, I'm tired, your powers leavin' me feelin' weak and I just wanna get off these streets," he began to walk ahead.  Something in his voice sounded so anxious and panicked that Rogue felt there had to be more to this than his evolving powers.  But to be honest, she wasn't in the mood to ask him any more questions while his mood was so unstable.  She walked along in the hope to catch up with him and walk aside him, but he'd disappeared into the shadows of the night, leaving her walking alone.


End file.
